The present disclosure generally relates to a patient support apparatus, such as a stretcher, having wheels or casters for transporting a patient. More particularly, the present disclosure relates to such patient support apparatus having push handles.
Transporting patients requiring the administration of medications intravenously using IV bags hung on floor supported, wheeled IV poles can be difficult. During transport, multiple caregivers may be needed for maneuvering the stretcher and an associated floor supported IV pole along the floor. It is known to provide stretchers with their own IV poles or with some type of mechanism for transporting a floor supported IV pole in tandem with the stretcher so that a caregiver does not have to hold the IV pole with one hand and push the stretcher with the other hand. It is also known to provide systems in which IV poles transfer from a wheeled cart to a stretcher or hospital bed. See U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,262,872; 4,945,592; 5,117,521; 5,319,816; 5,407,163; and 6,585,206 for examples of these various types of prior art devices.
Although the term “stretcher” is used throughout this disclosure, it is understood that the teachings of this disclosure may be incorporated into other types of patient support apparatuses, such as, for example, hospital beds, imaging tables, operating tables, and so on. The term “patient support apparatus,” as used in this description and claims, therefore, shall be understood to include any type of patient support apparatus, such as, for example, a stretcher, a hospital bed, an imaging table, an operating table, and the like.